Electrical connector and assembly

ABSTRACT

A connector assembly in the form of a staked array of post connectors. utilizing such connectors, electrical components, such as integrated circuit packages, can be loosely secured in place by automated means for subsequent soldering procedures. The connectors are best shaped into a modified U-shaped beam with one end adapted for point-to-point wiring and the other end having two oppositely facing longitudinal channels for receiving in one of such channels a lead from the component. The component being loosely secured on the baseboard by at least two of its leads between a respective pair of such connectors. The component leads extend up substantially parallel to respective connectors and are secured in the facing channels of the connectors by projections from the sides of said channels which engage the industry standardized shoulders on the component leads at the appropriate height.

United States Patent Carter 3,636,497 1451 Jan. 1s, 1972 [54] ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR AND Primary Examiner-Marvin A. Champion Assistant Examiner-Terrell P. Lewis ASSEMBLY [72] Inventor:

[73] Assignee:

William J. Keating, Ronald D. Gret'e, William Hintze, Adrian 1. La Rue, Frederick W. Raring, Jay L. Seitchik and John P. Vandenburg Clyde Thomas Carter, Mechanicsburg, Pa. Anomey cunis' Moms and Safibrd AMP Incorporated, Harrisburg, Pa.

Feb. 6, 1970 [2]] Appl. No.2 9,304

ABSTRACT A connector assembly in the form of a staked array of post connectors. utilizing such connectors, such as integrated circuit packages, c

[22] Filed:

electrical components, an be loosely secured in [52] US. Cl. [51] Int. Cl.

....339/l7 CF, 339/221 R, 339/256 R place by automated means for subsequent soldering procedures. The connectors are best shaped into a modified U-shaped beam with one end adapted for point-to-point wir- 317/101 ing and the other end having two oppositely facing longitudinal channels for receiving in one of such channels a lead from the component. The component being loosely secured [58] Field of References Cited on the baseboard by at least two of its leads between a respec- UNXTED STATES PATENTS tive pair of such connectors. The component leads extend up substantially parallel to respective connectors and are secured mm.& mm "J5m- Y0 fr. .mM a ne J 0 n W n h y u, b m a 3e 08 tn c m e h wh Chm 8 SC ffle H mm .1. e m m 3 0 6 sfw .m C is. Z mfinmh am .mmdh PPRF w w MKZEU 7.199 Jw 33 "33 3 n m mm m n. Mi m kLfl recm l e name IW mo a SKWMB 94479 56666 99999 11111 ll/l/ 8125 ll 1 06382 24080 5 ,53 85270 956 8 23333 7 Claims, 7 Drawing Figures PATENIEB .nmsmz SHEET 1 OF 2 VIII/I INVENTOR CL rm? f K 7'52 PATENTEB .ml 2 3 B72 SHEET 2 OF 2 INVENTOR CL 706 I (AZT C,

BY 6 ATFR Yf ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR AND ASSEMBLY This invention relates to a post-type electrical connector and assembly and more particularly to such a connector utilized with soldering techniques.

With continued development of increasingly complex electrical components, such as diodes, transistors, integrated circuits, and the like, the problems of mounting these in electrical circuits have become increasingly difficult and costly, particularly with greater miniaturization and complexity. One of the more popular methods of electrically mounting integrated circuit packages involves the use of header installations which utilize an array of post connectors, a separate header, a housing for the header, and commonly requires manual assembly of the integrated circuit package into such an installation. Even older methods usually required hand soldering. More recent attempts to introduce automated soldering techniques at a reasonable cost to high-density installations of integrated circuit packages have resulted in problems concerning the handling and orientation of the individual electrical components during loading and subsequent soldering to avoid improper placement and misalignment resulting in incorrect or unreliable connections.

it is an object of the present invention to provide an electrical connector and a connector assembly for overcoming the problems discussed herein.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an electrical connector which is cost competitive with other functionally equivalent connectors and further greatly reduces the installed cost.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a connector which is universal in that it will accept round or flat leads.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a connector, a plurality of which may be staked in a given array all facing the same direction and still permit loading of the electrical component between connectors without requiring a specific orientation.

It is still a further object of the present invention to provide a connector which can give dense packaging of electrical components by an automated process utilizing soldering techniques.

The connector and assembly of the present invention achieves these objects in a preferred embodiment by a staked post connector having one end adapted to make wire wrap connection to further circuitry and having the other end formed with two oppositely facing longitudinal channels. The connector is preferably formed of flat metal stock shaped into a U-beam construction which has been narrowed to a mounting means (formed as a central staking portion) and further narrowed to a terminating means (which is a wire wrap post). The U-shaped end opposite from the terminating means, here characterized as the contact end, forms one of the aforementioned channels. The other channel of this contact end is formed at that end from the bottom or base portion of the U- shaped beam by dividing the bottom at that point so that it extends out as extensions of the side of the U-shaped beam such that these extensions together with the remaining bottom form the second channel. A pair of such connectors staked opposite one another facing the same direction can receive the leads of an electrical component in the facing channels and hold them there for subsequent soldering of the leads to the respective connector. The retaining means for holding each lead in its channel in the preferred embodiment is formed by an undercutting of the respective channel walls at a standardized tive connector. Another adjacent portion of the base of the U- shaped beam at the contact end is cut free of the sides and bent up into the U-portion to an extent sufficient to center a lead laid against it in the beam channel relative to a lead similarly laid in the other channel.

In this specification and the accompanying drawings I have shown and described a preferred embodiment of my invention and have suggested various alternatives and modifications thereof; but it is to be understood that these are not intended to be exhaustive and that many other changes and modifications can be made within the scope of the invention. These suggestions herein are selected and included for purposes of illustration in order that other skilled in the art will more fully understand the invention and the principles thereof and will thus be enabled to modify it and'embody it in a variety of forms, each as may be best suited to the conditions of a particular use. I

In the accompanying drawings:

FIG. 1 is an isometric view of an assembly of a preferred embodiment according to the present invention showing an integrated circuit package positioned between parallel rows of connectors;

FIG. 2 is a vertical side elevation of a staked connector according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention with a lead of the integrated circuit package being shown at the upper left and a similar lead shown in dash-dot outline on the right as an alternative orientation;

FIG. 3 is a front elevation of the connector in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is an end view of the tip of the connector shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, omitting background detail;

FIGS. 5 and 6 are sectional views taken along lines 55 and 6-6, respectively, in FIG. 2, omitting background detail; and

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 7 -7 in FIG. 3, omitting background detail.

In the illustrated embodiment, the connector assembly 10 is formed of connectors 12 staked into the baseboard 14 by an interference fit. The connector 12 is basically an approximately square male post formed of a U-shaped beam stamped out of flat metal stock. ONe end of the post serves as the terminating means 16 having a pointed tip 18 designed for point-topoint wire wrap termination. This was narrowed down from the mounting means 20 formed from the central portion of the connector post 12. The mounting means 20 serves effectively to stake the connector 12 into position on the baseboard I4.

The mounting means 20 in turn was formed down from the contact end 22. The contact end 22 forms two channels 24 and 26 which are designed to receive a lead 28 of an electrical component 30. Through the transition between the mounting means 20 and the contact end 22 the conductor post is strengthened by extension 31.

Channel 24 is defined by the U-shaped beam configuration of contact end 22. Channel 26 is defined by side projections 32 and the bottom 34 of the U-beam of contact end 22. The projections 32 are formed by dividing out a portion of the bottom 34 as can best be seen in FIGS. 2 and 3. An adjacent portion of the bottom 34 is bent at right angles into the channel 24 to form a positioning tab 36. The function of this tab 36 is to position a lead 26 laid in the channel 24 at substantially the same distance from the centerline of the connector 12 as this same lead would be positioned relative to the centerline if it were laid similarly in channel 26 on the other side of the connector 12. This symmetry can best be seen by reference to FIG. 2 where a lead 28 is shown in channel 26 on the left, and a lead 28 is shown in dash-dot outline in the position it would assume if similarly laid in channel 24.

As can best be seen by reference to FIG. 3, the lead 28 of integrated circuit packages 30 and other similar electrical components can have a broadened portion 38 which in accordance with an industry standard is formed at a given length and may vary from that length only within a narrow range. Advantage of that fact is taken in the retaining means for the illustrated preferred embodiment by providing an undercut 40 on the projections 32 and a similar undercut 42 on the sides of the U-bearn on the contact end 22. These undercuts 40 and 42 are advantageously angled at approximately 45 (see FIG. 2) so that as the electrical component 30 is placed between a pair, or more commonly a double row, of connectors 12 the leads 28 catch in the channels 24 and 26 with the shoulders 38 snapping in below the undercut portions 40 and 42. By being angled at about 45 the electrical component is secured in place but can be more readily removed than if the angle were at 90", should subsequent replacement be required. The leads 24 sometimes take the form of circular wires having broadened portions 38 which are beads or bulges formed in the wire at the appropriate position. Within the broader aspectsof this invention, the retaining means can take other forms and may key on the ends of the leads 28 rather than on the broadened portions 38. This latter is less advantageous because the permissible variations in length according to industry standards are greater with regard to the end of the lead 28 than with regard to the positioning of the broadened portion 38.

Subsequent to positioning of the electrical component 30 between connectors 12, as, for example, illustrated in FIG. 1, the ends of connectors 12 together with the leads 28 positioned therein are soldered by conventional -dip soldering, wave soldering, or even hand soldering techniques. The relative sizes and internal clearances of the connectors with regard to the leads 28 are chosen so that the solder will reliably wick up into positions sufficient to form a reliable solder joint between the connector 12 and the lead 28. In a typical instal lation the overall length of a connector 12 of the type illustrated would be on the order of 1 inch with the width of the contact end 22 being somewhat less than 0.05 inches.

Becauseof the positive positioning and gripping attributes of the connector and assembly of the present invention, it is particularly well adapted to complete automated installation of the connectors themselves and of the electrical components, wiring and soldering thereof. A salient advantage of the invention, from the standpoint of the manufacturer of electronic equipment, is that the leads 28 can be positioned against either or two opposite sides of the contact end 22 as clearly illustrated in FIG. 1. It should be explained with regard to this advantage that connectors and terminals are usually inserted into printed circuit boards by automatic high-speed insertion machinery which is mounted in a fixed position, or at least in a fixed orientation, with respect to the printed circuit board into which'connectors are being inserted. Furthermore, the connectors must usually be in a predetermined orientation when they are fed through the inserting machine. It follows that if the connector is of a type which must be mounted on the printed circuit board in a specific orientation to accept a component lead, two opposed connectors must be mounted in reverse orientation with respect to each other and during the inserting operation, either the inserting apparatus or the printed circuit board must be reoriented between the two insertion operations. Such reorientation of the board or the apparatus is undesirable in that the inserting process is slowed down. If connectors of the type herein disclosed are used, however, such reorientation is not necessary because of the fact that the lead 28 can be positioned against either one of two sides of the connector as shown in FIG. 1.

Some of the broader aspects of this invention can be realized in connectors 12 made from mill stock rather than flat metal stock; however, some of the advantages gained thereby are partially offset by other disadvantages.

1 claim:

1. A connector for an electrical component having a lead comprising mounting means for positioning said connector, terminating means for electrically joining circuitry to said connector, a post formed with said mounting and terminating means, said post having opposingly oriented longitudinal channels, retaining means on said post for positioning lead against said post in one of itschannels, said channels being constructed and positioned such that leads similarly laid in either channel are symmetrically oriented relative to the centerline of said posts, said post being in the form of a U-shaped beam, a portion of the length of the bottom of said beam near one end being divided to form'extensions of either side of the U and thereby shape one of said channels, the U of said beam forming the other said channel, a positioning tab formed of an adjacent portion of the bottom of said beam being angled up into the U a distance sufiicient to give symmetrical orientation to leads similarly laid in either channel.

2. A connector as claimed in claim 1 wherein said mounting means is a central portion of said post adapted for staking in a baseboard and said terminating means is the end of said post opposite from said channels constructed for point-to-point wiring.

3. A connector as claimed in claim 2 wherein said retaining means is formed by an approximately 45 undercutting of said extensions back to the bottom of said U and of a portion of the sides of said U at the same point along said beam, which undercutting engages the broadened portion of a lead.

4. A connector as claimed in claim 3 wherein said beam is narrowed down to said mounting means and is narrowed down again to said terminating means.

5. A connector assembly comprising a baseboard, a pair 0 connectors as claimed in claim 1 staked into said baseboard spaced and oriented opposite one another facing in the same direction.

6. A connector assembly as claimed in claim 5 further comprising an electrical component having oppositely directed leads which component is positioned on said baseboard between said connectors with the broadened portion of a respective lead in a facing channel of each connector.

7. A connector assembly as claimed inclaim 6 wherein said electrical component is a industry standardized integrated circuit package with twosets of oppositely directed leads each having a standardized point of relatively abrupt broadening said pair of connectors being part of two parallel rows of such similarly oriented connectors each engaging a respective lead, and said retaining means is formed by an approximately 45 undercutting of said extensions back to the bottom of said U and of a portion of the sides of said U at substantially the same point along said beam, which undercutting engages the broadened portion of a lead. 

1. A connector for an electrical component having a lead comprising mounting means for positioning said connector, terminating means for electrically joining circuitry to said connector, a post formed with said mounting and terminating means, said post having opposingly oriented longitudinal channels, retaining means on said post for positioning lead against said post in one of its channels, said channels being constructed and positioned such that leads similarly laid in either channel are symmetrically oriented relative to the centerline of said posts, said post being in the form of a Ushaped beam, a portion of the length of the bottom of said beam near one end being divided to form extensions of either side of the U and thereby shape one of said channels, the U of said beam forming the other said channel, a positioning tab formed of an adjacent portion of the bottom of said beam being angled up into the U a distance sufficient to give symmetrical orientation to leads similarly laid in either channel.
 2. A connector as claimed in claim 1 wherein said mounting means is a central portion of said post adapted for staking in a baseboard and said terminating means is the end of said post opposite from said channels constructed for point-to-point wiring.
 3. A connector as claimed in claim 2 wherein said retaining means is formed by an approximately 45* undercutting of said extensions back to the bottom of said U and of a portion of the sides of said U at the same point along said beam, which undercutting engages the broadened portion of a lead.
 4. A connector as claimed in claim 3 wherein said beam is narrowed down to said mounting means and is narrowed down again to said terminating means.
 5. A connector assembly comprising a baseboard, a pair of connectors as claimed in claim 1 staked into said baseboard spaced and oriented opposite one another facing in the same direction.
 6. A connector assembly as claimed in claim 5 further comprising an electrical component having oppositely directed leads which component is positioned on said baseboard between said connectors with the broadened portion of a respective lead in a facing channel of each connector.
 7. A connector Assembly as claimed in claim 6 wherein said electrical component is a industry standardized integrated circuit package with two sets of oppositely directed leads each having a standardized point of relatively abrupt broadening said pair of connectors being part of two parallel rows of such similarly oriented connectors each engaging a respective lead, and said retaining means is formed by an approximately 45* undercutting of said extensions back to the bottom of said U and of a portion of the sides of said U at substantially the same point along said beam, which undercutting engages the broadened portion of a lead. 